Shiva's and Metta's Mother's Sutra

Yesterday was seven months since Pa left us. It has been so much change I can't even begin to tell you what that's been like. There are little mercies. For a start, there is the gaping hole which Pa has left. Ma, of course, feels it the most. He was her steadfast companion and he helpmeet. It is tough for Ma. Very tough. In that time, we have steadied her but the last few weeks has seen her mobility go down. Just did a physio session with Ma. Anyway - it is really depressing to watch her just be so resigned. It is resignation really. I can't motivate her to do anything. Anyway, here is a song about the haze in the style of Count on Me Singapore. Alamak Singapore (sung to the tune of Count on me Singapore) We have a vision for tomorrow (Just believe, GDP) We have a goal for Singapore  (Just believe, GDP) You and me, we'll do our part Consume and work hard, never stop  We're going to show the world what Singapore can be Good GDP, good GDP There's something down th...

Why is it that when people are left with the right and the wrong thing to do, they always choose the wrong thing? It is unfathomable.

in a democracy shouldn't the judiciary be free of political influence? The principle that the judiciary should be free from political influence is a cornerstone of most modern democracies, often referred to as judicial independence. This independence is intended to ensure that legal disputes are decided based on the law and the facts of the case, rather than the preferences of the party in power or the pressures of public opinion. When judges are insulated from political influence, they can protect the rule of law by holding government officials accountable to the constitution and statutes. If the executive or legislative branches could dictate judicial outcomes, the courts would cease to be an impartial arbiter and instead become a tool for the government to target opponents or legitimize illegal actions. This protection is especially critical for safeguarding the rights of minorities and individuals who may be unpopular with the majority or the ruling party. However, achieving to...

Last night, I spoke to Ma and I said to her, can I speak freely? This came after a particularly difficult episode where she insisted her feet were sticky and they had lost their 'smoothness'. I said, you know that you are getting the best care possible don't you? And she said, yes, I know that. And I said you know that you are safe don't you? She said, yes. Then I said, I know you miss Pa so much and you wish he was here. Yes, she said. But I also understand that he was 82 and if he was still here he would be suffering. Yes. I said. You know that if he were still alive, he would probably be in great pain. And he was also becoming more and more demented. He refused to wear hearing aids, so he was often left out of everything. BUT I said, you know that if he could say anything, he would say that he would want you to be happy. I know, she replied. Well, I said, I can do everything for you, but I cannot make you happy Ma, you have to do that for yourself. And I also know th...

I know myself. I know what I want to do. I know what nourishes me. I know what I need to do. This is all good. It's all good. Right:- Clear the table and the hall Look at all my projects and create a plan for them Proritise Go for run and swim Get dinner ready Yesterday, in the pool Jac said to me, this is the life. I said, it sure is. The spa life, she said. Yep, I replied. And you life it, she said. I sure do, I replied. I do, I do live the fucking spa life. Actually I've lived it all my life. I have lived it as a teenager, I have lived it as an adult. I've lived it as a mum and a conservationist and a teacher. I have - I have totally lived it completely. Not as in luxury, but in a way luxury. I have just done what I believed is right. I have never knowingly taken part in stupid materialistic schemes where the money I've made has come from idiotic, useless things. So in that sense, I have indeed lived the life. And it's partly because I have never been interested ...

Well, only this morning I got up at 6 am, ready to do everything. I had breakfast with Ma, then we went to the Serangoon Polyclinic, to discover that there has been a computer systems crash island wide so we would be waiting for ages to check in to see the dr to renew a prescription. I pushed her to Food Republic through an eerily silent and empty NEX, only to find that the airconditioning wasn't working. Then I pushed her back to the clinic to see that it was still under repair - it still is four hours later - and then we went to the local market to eat.  I was so tired by the time I got back that after the Duolingo, I fell asleep, of course. But was asked by Oisin to accompany him for a late breakfast at 10.30 am. Then I bought som fruit, ox tail and seow bak at NTUC, told off a very rude old man, and then came home. After that I cut up the watermelon and seow bak, fed Ma and then fell asleep. It is now 2 pm. Just like that. The day can't decide what it wants to do.  The haz...

Having now had the experience of being in Singapore during the F1, I can safely say that it is a spectacle on par with the circuses of Rome. You think football games are the bread and circuses, you ain't seen nothing yet. The entirety of the centre of the city is commandeered for a literal chariot race and gladiatorial game. The drivers and the cars and the pits, etc no doubt were no less busy and preoccupied than they were back at the height of the Roman Empire and the crowds were just as asinine and the officials were just as mindless. Let us not forget that the dictators walked around Rome with 12 lictors who carrieed fasces - which is where the word fascist comes from.  They were little better than glorified mob bosses in the end. Just was with the Roman Empire, these spectacles were used to distract the crowds. Free bread was handed out and the crowd were invited to watch these distractions to forget the madness which lay all around them. In Rome it was vast inequality, politi...